Video does not play on Android [what to do?]

User question

Hello.

Can you please tell me, my smartphone does not play some of the videos: both online and simply from an SD card. I tried to watch these videos on my old phone - everything is OK with it.

I think maybe this is due to the fact that I have Android 9.0 on the new version, and on the old 6.0. Tell me what?

Hello.

Few introductory notes (it would be nice to see a link to a video that is shown and which is not), and, by the way, most likely the Android version has nothing to do with it ...

Most often, a playback problem is observed due to a missing codec (which encodes the video), or due to incorrect browser settings (for example, when Flash Player is disabled). In general, be that as it may, below I will consider everything in order, where to start and how to check ... 👌

Why the video may not play on the phone

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"Basic and commonplace"

Check the current time , Timezone and date ... With incorrectly set parameters, some services (especially from Google) may stop working normally;
when using ad blockers (AdBLock) or VPN - it is recommended to turn them off while searching and eliminating the reasons (in some cases, they are the "culprits");
if you watch the video through a browser, try turning it off hardware acceleration (in Chrome for this you need to open the page: " chrome: // flags "and enter" accelerated ... "in the search - with" Enabled ", switch the found parameter to" Disabled "mode 👇);
Disable hardware acceleration in Chrome
try to clear the cache and change the browser (if the previous manipulations did not help). You can also advise to connect to a Wi-Fi network with faster internet.

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About Flash Player

If we are talking about online video, then it is very likely that the inability to play some videos on the network (and possibly games and a number of elements of sites) is due to the disabling of Flash Player.

For example, the mobile version of the Chrome browser for Android is generally without Flash Player (and has been for a long time), and it cannot be turned on ...

Alternatively, I would recommend trying Dolphin or UC Browser (Google Play link). They still play similar videos (note: for which Flash Player is needed).

In addition, for example, UC Browser has a built-in "library" of the most popular videos (for sure, you can find there most of what you wanted to watch).

UC Browser - video catalog

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Format and codec used to compress the video

As you can imagine, each video is compressed with a specific codec (otherwise no network bandwidth would be enough ...).

So, if the video does not open, there is no image when viewing it (or when you try to open it, the error "cannot play video" appears) - it is likely that:

video format is not supported. For example, not every phone will be able to play FLV or MKV formats;
the required codec is missing (often the video being played either has no sound or no image (just a black screen)).

Decide a similar problem can be done in two ways:

before copying the video to the phone - drive them through the special. converter on the computer. For example, in "Video Master" (how to use) there are ready-made templates for a variety of phones. By choosing one of them - the program quickly enough converts the video, which will be played exactly;
For which device to prepare files / Video Master
install on the phone special. a file player with all the most popular codecs already built in (for example, BS Player, MX-Player or VLC). However, it is worth making a note right away: that this is not a panacea for "all" problems (for example, if the video is of very high resolution - not every phone will be able to "pull" it and then there is no way to convert it ...).
Broadcast / VLC player

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If the video opens, but it slows down a lot, it freezes

Quite a popular version of the problem.Usually, the phone starts to freeze or slow down a lot when trying to open 4K (FullHD) video (especially if the device is "weak" / old enough).

The solution in this case will be the same - video transcoding into MP4 format with an acceptable bit rate and resolution (for your device).

👉 Help!

How to convert video to MP4 (which supports most TV, PC and mobile gadgets: iPhone, iPad, Samsung, PSP, HTC).

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Slow internet connection / Alternative

If the speed of your channel is not enough to watch online video (for example, due to some technical work at the provider), there are "freezes", frequent pauses of 1-2 seconds. (buffering), etc.

👉 To help!

How to check internet speed on Android phone - see instructions

Alternatively, you can recommend in this case, first download the video to the phone memory, and then watch. This can be done using the good old torrent programs ☝ (by the way, not everyone knows that torrents can also be used on the phone).

In addition, with the help of torrent trackers, you can always find an analogue of the video that you cannot play (only in a different quality and compressed with an excellent codec!).

👉 Help!

How to set up and use torrent on Android (or how to download torrent files from your phone).

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Clearing the browser cache

In some cases, the browser's inability to display a page with videos and pictures is due to cache errors. Most often, with this problem, the page layout is dispersed, and instead of a block with a video, "no one knows what" is displayed ...

To clear the cache in Chrome (for example), just go to the settings, open the personal data tab and click on the item to clear history (see screenshots below). It is recommended to delete all cache and history completely.

Chrome - clear cache

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Reset phone settings

If, instead of a video block, you see advertising offers, intrusive windows pop up (even on those sites where they did not exist before), it is likely that your Android is infected with a virus (or adware). This can also be one of the reasons for the inability to watch videos, pictures, etc.

👉 Help!

How to remove a virus from an Android phone - see step by step instructions

In some cases, it is possible to completely remove viruses and adware from the phone only with a reset (the so-called HARD Reset - that is, returning the device to the factory presets).

Important: during this operation, all files, contacts, etc. information from the phone will be deleted, save everything you need in advance ...

👉 Help!